Vacuum cleaners which separate dirt and dust from an airflow without the use of a filter bag, so-called bagless vacuum cleaners, are becoming increasingly popular. Most bagless cleaners use cyclonic or centrifugal separation to spin dirt and dust from the airflow. By avoiding the use of a filter bag as the primary form of separation, it has been found possible to maintain a consistently high level of suction, even as the collecting chamber fills with dirt and dust.
In a typical cyclonic vacuum cleaner, an airflow in which dirt and dust is entrained enters a first cyclonic separator via a tangential inlet. The inlet causes the airflow to follow a spiral or helical path within a collection chamber so that dirt and dust is separated from the airflow. Relatively clean air passes out of the chamber whilst the separated dirt and dust is collected therein. In some cyclonic vacuum cleaners, the airflow is then passed to a second cyclone separator which is capable of separating finer dirt and dust than the upstream cyclone. The airflow is thereby cleaned to a greater degree so that, by the time the airflow exits the cyclonic separating apparatus, the airflow is almost completely free of dirt and dust particles. The dirt and dust is left behind inside the collecting chamber.
When the collecting chamber becomes full, a user typically removes the collecting chamber from the chassis of the machine, carries the chamber to a dust bin or refuse sack and empties the contents of the chamber into the bin or sack. The chamber may be emptied by inverting it. Alternatively, a manually operable catch may release the base portion of the chamber so that the dirt and dust falls out of the chamber into the bin or sack.
Typically, a handle is provided to enable the user easily to carry the collecting chamber to the bin or sack for emptying. Conveniently, the same handle may be employed by the user for lifting the vacuum cleaner in its entirety when the collecting chamber is attached to the chassis, to facilitate carrying the cleaner between different locations.
A problem which may be encountered with such appliances is that, when the user is carrying the appliance by means of the handle, he may accidentally release the catch holding the collecting chamber to the chassis. Thus, the chassis may be released completely from the chamber and may fall to the ground. This may cause damage to the chassis as well as being an inconvenience to the user.